A361 – Road Closure between Wardington and Chipping Warden
This morning 2nd December 2024 we received the follow message from Cllr George Reynolds:-
I have been contacted about the road closure.
Apparently a sink hole has appeared but OCC think the bridge is okay but they will need to wait for the water to go down or ditches cleared so it can drain away before they examine the bridge structure.
Then they will have to do repairs
Clearly this will all take time so do not expect a quick opening of the road.
I have made the point that they must work with HS2 to prevent their traffic using the minor roads. I suspect there is not a lot can be done with normal traffic as satnavs will send vehicles all over the place.
If I get any more details I will try and update you all.
Local Newspapers have reported the following:-
Northants Chronical
Oxfordshire County Council’s highways authority confirmed the closure this morning and has suggested a diversion that would take heavy goods vehicles some 35 miles out of its way, if they avoid country lanes.
Residents of the surrounding villages – Appletree, Culworth, Chacombe and others – are likely to expect a huge increase in traffic, including HGVs, trying to get to and from Banbury and the M40.
An Oxfordshire County Council spokesman told our sister paper the Banbury Guardian: “We have carried out an inspection.
Details are unclear but reports say the road has been closed after the bridge between Wardington and Chipping Warden collapsed and a large ‘sink hole’ appeared It could mean the closure will affect this main route into Daventry and Northamptonshire for some considerable time.
Stagecoach has tweeted that its service to Banbury has been affected. It said: “Due to the A361 being closed we are unable to serve Wardington with the divert in place. This will also cause delays on our B9 service. We are sorry for an inconvenience caused.”
The closure is likely to affect the narrow village roads around the area as traffic, much of it heavy, seeks alternative routes via Satnav.
We shall endeavor to update Wardington parish residents as soon as we hear more.
Wardington Parish Council.
I personally think it’s an disgusting that working people who relying on the bus to do this is now even more expensive.
Thanks Bob This is all well and good but does nothing for those that rely on public transport . Like many villagers I am happy to help but how can the Parish Council help formalise something which could takes months to resolve. Oh and there remains the flooding issue in Upper Wardington to resolve as well